Sales at stores open at least a year, a key measure of retail health, fell 2.9% in the quarter. Comparable sales at rival McDonald's climbed 4.1%.

In addition to increased competition, Wendy's said it was still recovering from a woman's false claim in March that she found a human finger in a bowl of chili at a Wendy's outlet.

Wendy's profit came from a $60.9-million pretax gain from the sale of land under 166 restaurants.

Sales at Wendy's restaurants, including company-owned outlets and franchises, fell 5.4% to $588.9 million in the quarter. Sales at Baja Fresh and other brands dropped 11% to $46.8 million, the company said.